Handless clock



l 1,626,988 May 3 1927' M. A. WNAS HANDLES S CLO C l( Filed Aup;.-29, 1925 5 Sheets-Sheet l M. A.. VRNAS HANDLESS CLOCK May 3 1927.

Filed Aug. 29, 1925 S5 Sheets-Shm-:: 2

.wann PX R xva M. A. VNAS HANDLESS CLOCK Filed Auxz. 29, 1925 3 SheetsSheet 5 Fil" hand shaft and the clockwork governor or balance wheel. I

More speciiically referring to the drawings; A

VThe clock face "lO mounted in al suitable icase l2 and'covered by a crystal held in the hinged bezel la, is provided with an hour indication opening or wipdow 16', with a units minutes indication windowx 17 and with a tens minutes window 18. lt is also usual to provide such `iiaces with winding lrev openings 19, with a second hand dial 20 and with various other adjustments and openings thereto;` as those skilled in the art will understand.

llhrough window '16and moreplainly in 2, may be seenthe hour dial 22 consist ing or a flat disc journalled on hollow arbor 24, hearing the numerals l to 12 on its upper face, provided with twelve downwardly turned driving lugs 26 and having secured to its under sur-face a locking .wheel 28 whose teeth 29 engage a locking spring 30 and assure that 'this dialalways comes to rest with one ot the 'numerals in correct registry with window 18. y

At window 18 and in Figs. 2, 3, 5 and 6 is visible the tens minutes dial 32 consist-ing or' disc somewhat smaller in diameter than disc 22, journalled `on arbor 33, bearing two series o'l1 sin numerals (each series reading from O to 5 inclusive) on its upper race, provided with two hour dial drive lingers 3d and secured to its periphery, and having secured to its under surface its drive gear 37 whose teeth 38 also engage a locking spring l0 whose purpose is similar to that et spring causing the numerals to correctly register with window 18.

rlhe units minutes dial 42, seen at window 17 Fig. l and in Figs. 2 and 3, is a fiat dise preferably of the same diameter as discs 32, yournallecl on arbor 43, bearing a single series of l0 numerals (reading from 0 to 9 inclusive) on its upper surface, and having secured to its under surface a drive gear l5 whose teeth lll also engage. locking spring and a tens minutes dial driving pinion d6. Pinion i6 engages and drives gear i7 journalling on arbor 47a. 'Gear 47 in turn drives pinion secured to the top or which, and revolving with the pinion, is a single tooth gear i9 engaging the tens minutes Vdial drive gear 37 ones each revolution of gear 49. Pinion 48 and gear il@ journal as a unit on arbor 4m. This gear train serves to turn the tens minutes dial the space ot one masses numeral for each complete revolution of the units minutes dial.

Units minutes dial drive gear 4-5 is actuated by the engagement of teeth 52 of gear wheel 54 which journals on arbor 54 and to whichlis securcdpinion 55 eiigaged withland driven by main drive gear 5G. Gear 5G directly, or through an adapter, engages the hour hand shaft which projects from the front frame of the4 usual hand type clockwork.

The particular type, and the details of the clockwork proper are immaterial to this invention, such clockworlrs are well known to those skilled in the art and need be neither shown nor described herein, it being understood that these devices usually consist ot a power. element, such as a spring or the like, anda governor for the power element, such as a balance wheel or the like. Suitable gearing connectthese and the'hour. minute, and second hands. lilith the minute hand gearing this invention has no concern, this may he removed or not as desired. Fig. 4 Vserves to show a portion or one form of such gearing as is commonly employed between the hour hand shaft and the balance wheel or governor. Gear 62 secured to the hour hand shaft 60 drives pinion 68 rotating shaft Gil and therethrough gear 65 driving pinion 70, shaft 7l and the gear 72. |Through pinion 74 escape wheel 75 pallets 76 lever 77 and pin'S oscillatory motion is applied to balance wheel 80. A suitable spring on the balance wheel shaft generally completes the clockwork governor mechanism which may be saidl to consist of escape wheel 75, pallets 76, lever 77, pin 78 and balance wheel 8O in particular.

At a suitable point in the governor drive gearing the ordinary regular toothed Tear is removed and a mutilated gear 65 substituted. Gear G5 is provided with live groups of eight teeth each (see 66 Fig. l) regularly spaced' around the gear circumference and between these live groups five spaces without teeth are provided. rllhus in operation the governor mechanism' is disengaged from the clockwork power mechanism whenever the end of a tooth group is reached and pinion 7l is reengaged when the beginning of the next tooth group reaches it. During the period of governor Idisengagement the clock work power mechanism is 'tree to speed up and it is the purpose of this mutilated gear to permit such speeding up when the indii io cator dials are moving, thus accelerating the rate of change and reducing the time for appearance or the next numeral to a minimum;

Preferably the entire dial drive mechanism and dials are supported through suit* able journals or arbors, such as journal 24 and arbore, 54a, 43, a7, 49, and 33, engaging a single support frame 90 which may also .mount suitable posts, a, 40 and 50 holding the locking springs 30, and 5() respectively. This trame 90 thus serves as a .means :for assembling the dial mechanism as a unit and :tor i'naking all necessary adjustments to such mechanism before applying the same to a clockwork. Application is thus reduced to applying gear 56 to hour hand shaft 60 (which passes through an opening in traine 90), and clamping frame 90 to the cloclrwoilctrame 92 by'such means as the screws 94, gear being inserted in the clockwork it desired.

ln operation the clockwork power mechanism drives hour hand shaft 60rotating gear 56 and therethru pinion 55 and toothed `wheel 54. Periodicallyteeth 52 on vWheel 54 engage a tooth 41 on gear 45 and turn dial 42 (the units minutes dial) the space of one numeral causing spring 5() to be forced over one tooth 41 and in snapping back to force dial 42 into vcorrect registry with Window 17. In notation dia-l 42 carries With'it Apinion 4 6 driving single tooth' gear 49 'throughgear 47 and pinion 48. Once each revolution of dial 42 and of gear 49, a tooth 330i.: gear 37 is engaged and vdial 32 turned the space of one numeral;

spring 40 snapping overva Itooth 38 and forcingthe dial to come to rest With its next numeral in correct registry with WindoW 18.v Dial 32 having two series of numerals thereon (when`r standard time s stem is employed) makes a com lete revo ution once in tivo hours and a hal revolution each hour'. Upon dial 32 and projecting from its periphery are the fingers' 34 and 35 so spaced that once each hall revolutionof dial 32 a lug 26 of dial 22 is engaged (see Figs.

shaft, is projected throughhollow journal l 24 and through the clock face so that second hand 71 may be aliixed.

Setting and Winding of this dial clock may be acconiplished by operation of the controls originally provided and these con trols may be rendered accessible from the clock lace through openings 19 and the like alter the manner` well known to the art when desired.l

Manifestly many changes and inodilications in the embodiment of this invention, and particularly those changes necessary to adapt the mechanism for the indication of other time systems, are Well ivithin the scope of this invention and the spirit of the appended claims. i f

I claim- 1. ln dialv indicator mechanism .for con'- verting clocks of the hand type, a Support member engageablo with' the clockwork frame, a tens minutes dial, a"units minutes dial, an hours dial, dial drive gearing connecting said dials and timing relative movements thereof, said drive gearing including `intermittently engaging gears and a main drive gear engaging the hour hand shaft of the hand clockwork mechanism, said support member provided With journal and arbor bearings Whereon said dials and dial drive gearing may be assembled and applied as a .unit to said clockwork to convert the saine to a dial indicator clock.

2.1n time piece` dial indicator mechanism, agear engaging the timepiece hour hand shaft, a spaced tooth gear driven by the first said gear, a gear secured to a minutes indicator dial shaft and intermittently turned by engagement of the said spaced teeth, a singletoothed gear actuat-A ed from said dial shaft and intermittentlyv engaging a gear on a second minutes indicatorl dial shaft,1 an hour indicator dial 'having spaced lugs thereon, and fingers on said second minutes dial intermittently engaging the lugs on said hour dial to turn the same. Signed at New York 27th August, 1925.

MANUEL A. VINAS.l 

